Guadeloupe the Land of Adventures!

January 2nd - 28, 2024

We arrived in Deshaies, Guadeloupe, late on January 2nd. This is a nice and popular stop for boaters, as it is a relatively quick trip, just over 8 hours from Antigua. When in the French Islands you have to start with a dinner of meat, cheese, and a fresh baguette.

Over the next few days, we explored the town and its gardens, and took an epic hike to nowhere. Our first hike was led by our buddy boat Gypsea. We affectionately call it the hike to nowhere. It was up a dried-out creek bed that was supposed to lead to some waterfalls, according to our trusted guide and buddy boat captain. It was actually not a bad hike; we just never reached a destination that had beautiful waterfalls.

One of the main attractions in Dehaies is the Jardin Botanique de Dehaies, a botanical garden. We spent the next day here just wandering the gardens and having lunch. Very beautiful and highly recommended. 

We also did a couple of snorkels around Anse Pointe Ferry, where we saw not one but two octopus. So cool when you see one of these elusive creatures. 

Next stop in Guadeloupe is the world-famous Jacques Cousteau Underwater Garden. We snorkeled the area, then put on our scuba gear for a very nice dive around Grand Ilet.

Nikki and I also had a great wreck dive called Franjack, where we saw so many lion fish. The Franjack is a gorgeous shipwreck used for deepening the rivers, channels and harbors it is 45 meters long (135 feet) and rests in 23 meters (77 feet) of depth, it was sank especially for diving, so it's cleaned and safe to enter the different parts of the structure. It is an amazing dive, and Nikki and I had it to ourselves.

After our dive, we packed up and worked our way south to Anse De Bouillante to soak in the hot pools. These are not for everyone. In our group, it was just Nikki and I that went for a soak. The pool is really an outlet stream that empties right in town next to the beach. It is super cool and reminded Nikki and I of our Iceland trip, where you just pull off the road and jump into a hot spring. We accessed The Thermes de Bouillante from the beach and worked our way closer to the outlet stream where the water temperature gets very high. The good news about these thermals is that the outlet runs right into the Caribbean Sea. You can choose how hot you want it. Want extreme heat? Move closer to the stream, or if you are more into a cooler soak, wade out into the sea. It has something for everyone. 

We had friends that had not wanted to soak in the Thermes and were already in Iles de Saintes, a small group of islands just south of Guadeloupe. It was a short 4 hour sail down and we had to move our first anchorage because we were not inside the markers. Our second anchor spot was nice but we saw a mooring ball come free closer to town and a bunch of Salty Dawgs that were also in the area. We spent the next few days hiking and socializing with other Dawgs. Iles de Saintes is a beautiful area we spent all our time there in Terre-de-Haut, a small French town on the sea. The only downside we have with the French islands is that they do not allow dogs on the beach. In this small town, we found a beach where we could get Zorro wet and then take him for a walk. 

After about a week, we headed North to the main city of Guadeloupe, Pointe-A-Pitre. Both Gypsea and ourselves needed to meet with the vet there to get an exit document and health certificate to get into our next island, Dominica. We stayed out on a mooring ball for the first couple of nights, then moved into the marina, Bas du Fort. We wanted to go and explore some of the island, and that meant leaving the dogs on our boats. It is easier in the marina because you can leave the AC on and not worry as much about them. It was starting to get warmer, and there is not a ton of wind in the area, nor is it safe to just leave your boat open close to a major city. We rented a car and explored the East side of Guadeloupe.  Guadeloupe is shaped like a butterfly with Pointe-A-Pitre in the middle. Since we sailed down the West wing we teamed up with Gypsea to explore the eastern wing. 

We went to the East point of the island and hiked up to a cross at Pointe de Chateaux which was absolutely beautiful.

Then we drove to the Cimetière de Morne-À-l'Eau and explored all the beautiful graveyard with its black and white checkerboard mosaics and tombs on the slopes of Le Morne, is considered the most beautiful cemetery in Guadeloupe and the Caribbean.

We also headed to La Grande Soufriere to hike the volcano that is there. This area is so beautiful, but we unfortunately had some bad luck with the weather. Better to have it on land instead of at sea. We did the hike anyway despite a little rain and the clouds blocking the views. Now and then, the clouds would part and give us a glimpse of the views. This, of course, is just to entice us to come back and try again in the future. Notice the man who was guiding the other group did the entire hike in his bare feet!

After a couple of days in the marina we moved just outside of the cut to a popular anchorage called Ilet de Gosier. Here there is a nice beach with a concrete pier to tie up to and a restaurant so I can see why so many cruisers spend a few days here. 

With vet, volcano hikes, and road trip explorations all done, it was time to move on to our next stop, Dominica. We are looking forward to this stop as it is an official Salty Dawg meet-up with events, diners, and tours already booked.  

Tune in next time for more adventures.